Bruce Benson

Bruce D. Benson was born July 4, 1938 in Chicago, Illinois. Benson attended Cornell University before transferring to the University of Colorado. He graduated in 1964 with a bachelor’s degree in geology, and then attended graduate school at the University of Colorado and the Colorado School of Mines.

Benson is the owner and chairman of Benson Mineral Group Inc, an oil and gas exploration and production company that also owns several other oil and gas related companies. Benson has also been involved in geothermal power, real estate, banking, mortgage servicing, cable television, real estate investment trusts, restaurants, franchising, manufacturing and trucking in his long career.

Since graduation from CU, Benson has divided his time between business, community service and politics. His corporate involvement has included chairman of the board and CEO of United States Exploration Inc. (AMEX) and serving as a board member of many other companies, including American Land Lease Corporation (NYSE), Asset Investors Corporation (NYSE), Bank Western (Western Capital-AMEX), First Interstate Bank of Denver and Hazen Research Inc.

Benson has immersed himself in the Denver and Colorado community for the last 30 years. He is the past chairman of the board of Metropolitan State College of Denver, past chairman of the Denver Public Schools Foundation Board and was instrumental in passing bond issues, mill levies and running school board elections. He is a former board member of Coleman Colorado Foundation-Institute for Cognitive Disabilities, Center of the American West, Boy Scouts of America (past Chairman), and Denver Zoological Foundation (past Chairman). In 2005, Benson co-chaired the Colorado Economic Recovery Act (the campaign for Referenda C &D).

Benson’s real passion is education. He is currently president of the University of Colorado system and executive in residence and professor attendant at the Business School at the University of Colorado at Denver. He has also been the chairman of the Colorado Commission of Higher Education, chairman of the Governor’s Blue Ribbon Panel for Higher Education for the 21st Century, co-chair of the P-20 Education Coordinating Council, and chairman of the University of Colorado’s $1 Billion Fundraising Campaign. Benson was also a member of the Foundation Board at CU and chaired the geology department’s $14 million Building Fund Drive. In his honor, the university named the building The Benson Earth Sciences Building. Outside Colorado, he served on the board of Smith College and as chairman of the Board of Berkshire School.

Benson has received Presidential appointments to the National Endowment for the Humanities, the National Park Foundation and the International Republican Institute.

Benson’s political involvement has been both local and national. In Colorado, he was the Republican nominee for governor, chairman of the Colorado Republican Party for seven years, chaired U.S. Senate campaigns and has been finance chair for countless campaigns. Benson chaired the Bush-Quayle campaign for seven western states, was finance chair for Bush-Cheney and was the national co-chair and financial and political chair for Romney for President Colorado. He was a presidential elector in 1988, an official election observer in Romania and Hungary in 1990 and has worked in other Eastern/Central European elections.

Because of his philanthropy, leadership and tireless work for the community, Benson has received many honors. Most meaningful to him is the Honorary Degree, Doctor of Humane Letters that he was awarded by the University of Colorado in 2004. Some of his other honors include ARCS Foundation Inc., Man of the Year in 1991, recipient of the University Medal at the University of Colorado in 1999 and being the Colorado ‘I Have a Dream Foundation’ Roastee in 2006.

In his has free time, Benson enjoys skiing, tennis, scuba diving and traveling. He is married to Marcy Head Benson and has two sons, one daughter and eight grandchildren, all of whom live in Colorado.